Riley has been coming up with many new things to say lately. She cracks me up on a daily basis. Some of the recent ones have been "Shake your body!" (complete with dance of shaking your body), "Dun dun dun" (she's trying to say dun dun dun dun...like a super hero appearing), and she like to tell us "Stop it." (which is followed up with a warning from Mommy or Daddy).
Tonight, Adam went to clip Riley's fingernails, which is something that he has claimed since her birth. I have never cut a fingernail yet in my Mommy career. So, while Adam is clipping her nails the clipped portions kept flying off onto the floor. Every time Riley would go "OH NO!!!! You drop a one!!" and try to dive out of his arms to pick it up. It cracked me up...but Adam didn't find it so funny. Cute, but not funny.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Drained
Today, I am drained. I went last night to see the midnight showing of New Moon with a great group of lady friends. One of the actors from the movie, Kiowa Gordon, who plays Embry Call in the movie made an appearance at the theater we were at. He is a cute guy, but is a bit young for me... he looks like he is 15, but he is actually 19. I guess I am gettin old...ha ha.
The movie was great and it was so wonderful to be a part of the fun! We got ready together, Anneke did my hair and makeup, and we were off! I will have pictures to post here in the next few days, we have had a down day today since I am feeling a bit off. It's not everyday I stay out until 3 am. I had a much needed ladies night out, and I plan on returning the favor and letting Adam have a night out here soon. It is a great stress relief to have some fun every once in while.
The movie was great and it was so wonderful to be a part of the fun! We got ready together, Anneke did my hair and makeup, and we were off! I will have pictures to post here in the next few days, we have had a down day today since I am feeling a bit off. It's not everyday I stay out until 3 am. I had a much needed ladies night out, and I plan on returning the favor and letting Adam have a night out here soon. It is a great stress relief to have some fun every once in while.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
The great mix up
I do not know if this is normal for two year olds, but Riley has been having a hard time keeping people's names straight. At first, I thought it was just her being silly...she would call her friend Ella by Ella's sister's name, Maya. So...Ella was Maya and Maya was Ella. Then we went to my Aunt and Uncle's house out in Queen Creek.
There is no way that you could think Aunt Shrrene is Uncle Rick. She is 35 weeks pregnant. Yet, Riley called her "Icky Ricky" (Uncle Ricky) and would call Uncle Rick "She She". Is that normal? No amount of convincing would work...she would tell you "Nooooo...that Icky Ricky.". Silly girl!
There is no way that you could think Aunt Shrrene is Uncle Rick. She is 35 weeks pregnant. Yet, Riley called her "Icky Ricky" (Uncle Ricky) and would call Uncle Rick "She She". Is that normal? No amount of convincing would work...she would tell you "Nooooo...that Icky Ricky.". Silly girl!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Fight for Preemies Day
Today, November 17th, is fight for preemies day. March of Dimes has asked that every blogging, preemie having parent, friend, grandparent, anyone affected by prematurity write about how it has affected them. It is truly something that affects everyone involved with the preemie. Not just the immediate family, but the extended family, the friends, and anyone else.
Bree was born 15 weeks, 2 days early at 25 weeks and 5 days gestation. Her weight was estimated at 1 pound but was unable to be weighed until after fluids had been given to her via IV and after that she weighed 1 pound 5 ounces. When she was pulled from my stomach she did not have a heartbeat and needed to have CPR right at birth. Her initial APGAR score was 0 on a scale of 0-10. All of her APGAR scores were 0, 1, and then 3. She was life flighted to Phoenix Childrens Hospital were she would spend the next 3 months and 5 days of her life. Within those days, she would have 2 surgeries, hundreds of x rays and ultrasounds, more needle pricks than I would like to think about, and she would have CPR again...for 28 minutes. She overcame much more than many adults that are in this world today. She truly is a miracle child.
Now, she is home, but not without struggles. We have numerous dr appts and therapies. We have had 3 hospital visits and 1 surgery since her discharge from the NICU. We will be having another surgery coming up here on the 9th of December to correct her lazy eyes. She is a very determined child who amazes me on a daily basis. She is always so happy and full of life.
Prematurity has affected us all. It has taken from me many things. I never got to nurse Bree and have that type of close bond with her. Instead...I got to hook myself up to a breast pump every two hours and sit there being like a cow on a mechanical milker. I never got to experience that normal birth, or to bring home a bundled sweet baby sister that Riley could hold. I never got to see the pride and excitement in my husband's eyes when I made him a father for the second time. All I got to see was fear and desperation in his eyes as he was being pushed out of the triage room with Riley screaming in his arms because (as the nurses said) "this is not a place for that little one...there is too much blood in here". And when I did come around and wake up from the c section, his first words were "She's so small.". He showed me a picture on his phone that he took before they took her in the helicopter, but even with that I had no concept of how tiny she was until I saw her for myself. She was so early that her eyelids were still fused together, and we would not see her beautiful eyes for another two weeks.
As a preemie parent, you get cheated out of being the first ones to bond with your baby because the reality of it is, is that you can't be there all the time. The wonderful nurses and doctors know your baby better than you do...and that hurts. You know in your heart it is for the best, but when your child is this fragile thing in a plastic box that you aren't allowed to touch for fear of hurting them, or causing them to desat it is just like a knife in your heart. Even when bringing her home from the NICU, I was worried that my own baby wouldn't know me, or would prefer to have one of the many nurses who loved her and snuggled with her at night.
Today, Bree's prematurity has affected me by making me more anxious. I worry about what is going to go wrong next, and how am I going to balance her needs with the needs of keeping our house up (which rarely happens lately), taking care of Riley, and me finishing my college. It has affected Adam because he no longer has the wife he used to know. I am worried that I will never get back to my old self...but I desperately want to for him. I cannot speak for him on any other aspect of the prematurity affecting him since I did not talk with him about this before writing it.
Bree's prematurity has affected Riley because she does not have a normal little sister that should be crawling by now, and even possible cruising furniture. Riley has to wait a lot for many things throughout the day because it takes 45 minutes to an hour to feed Bree...and that's three times a day (7, 12, 4). And last, but not least, it has affected our friends. We call upon them during late night ER runs, for doctor appointments so we don't have to take Riley, and for support. This experience has truly shown the true colors of our friends, and it has made us eternally grateful for the wonderful friends that we do have. Without them, I would be even more crazy than I am now.
So, thank you to all that have been a part of our journey of prematurity up to this point. It for certain does not end here because the effects of prematurity will follow Bree for the rest of her life. But, I know for sure that she will keep on smiling.
If you can spare a dollar, or even two...make a donation to March of Dimes.
Make a donation in honor of Bumble Bree. She went from this....
to this...
...in one year. All because of the medical advances made by money raised from donors like you who supported the March of Dimes...and their fight for preemies.
Bree was born 15 weeks, 2 days early at 25 weeks and 5 days gestation. Her weight was estimated at 1 pound but was unable to be weighed until after fluids had been given to her via IV and after that she weighed 1 pound 5 ounces. When she was pulled from my stomach she did not have a heartbeat and needed to have CPR right at birth. Her initial APGAR score was 0 on a scale of 0-10. All of her APGAR scores were 0, 1, and then 3. She was life flighted to Phoenix Childrens Hospital were she would spend the next 3 months and 5 days of her life. Within those days, she would have 2 surgeries, hundreds of x rays and ultrasounds, more needle pricks than I would like to think about, and she would have CPR again...for 28 minutes. She overcame much more than many adults that are in this world today. She truly is a miracle child.
Now, she is home, but not without struggles. We have numerous dr appts and therapies. We have had 3 hospital visits and 1 surgery since her discharge from the NICU. We will be having another surgery coming up here on the 9th of December to correct her lazy eyes. She is a very determined child who amazes me on a daily basis. She is always so happy and full of life.
Prematurity has affected us all. It has taken from me many things. I never got to nurse Bree and have that type of close bond with her. Instead...I got to hook myself up to a breast pump every two hours and sit there being like a cow on a mechanical milker. I never got to experience that normal birth, or to bring home a bundled sweet baby sister that Riley could hold. I never got to see the pride and excitement in my husband's eyes when I made him a father for the second time. All I got to see was fear and desperation in his eyes as he was being pushed out of the triage room with Riley screaming in his arms because (as the nurses said) "this is not a place for that little one...there is too much blood in here". And when I did come around and wake up from the c section, his first words were "She's so small.". He showed me a picture on his phone that he took before they took her in the helicopter, but even with that I had no concept of how tiny she was until I saw her for myself. She was so early that her eyelids were still fused together, and we would not see her beautiful eyes for another two weeks.
As a preemie parent, you get cheated out of being the first ones to bond with your baby because the reality of it is, is that you can't be there all the time. The wonderful nurses and doctors know your baby better than you do...and that hurts. You know in your heart it is for the best, but when your child is this fragile thing in a plastic box that you aren't allowed to touch for fear of hurting them, or causing them to desat it is just like a knife in your heart. Even when bringing her home from the NICU, I was worried that my own baby wouldn't know me, or would prefer to have one of the many nurses who loved her and snuggled with her at night.
Today, Bree's prematurity has affected me by making me more anxious. I worry about what is going to go wrong next, and how am I going to balance her needs with the needs of keeping our house up (which rarely happens lately), taking care of Riley, and me finishing my college. It has affected Adam because he no longer has the wife he used to know. I am worried that I will never get back to my old self...but I desperately want to for him. I cannot speak for him on any other aspect of the prematurity affecting him since I did not talk with him about this before writing it.
Bree's prematurity has affected Riley because she does not have a normal little sister that should be crawling by now, and even possible cruising furniture. Riley has to wait a lot for many things throughout the day because it takes 45 minutes to an hour to feed Bree...and that's three times a day (7, 12, 4). And last, but not least, it has affected our friends. We call upon them during late night ER runs, for doctor appointments so we don't have to take Riley, and for support. This experience has truly shown the true colors of our friends, and it has made us eternally grateful for the wonderful friends that we do have. Without them, I would be even more crazy than I am now.
So, thank you to all that have been a part of our journey of prematurity up to this point. It for certain does not end here because the effects of prematurity will follow Bree for the rest of her life. But, I know for sure that she will keep on smiling.
Make a donation in honor of Bumble Bree. She went from this....
to this...
...in one year. All because of the medical advances made by money raised from donors like you who supported the March of Dimes...and their fight for preemies.
Riley Spews....and a few updates.
Now, while not as exciting as the story last night, this one was still eventful. While my stepmom was out, she had wanted my cousin (her nephew) to come out and visit while she was here. So, on Thursday we decided to drive out to Queen Creek to go get him. For those of you who don't know, that is about a 2 hour drive. So, it is a really long drive for a 1 year old and a 2 year old. Riley had been cranky that day, but nothing too out of the ordinary. Just as we were reaching the exit we needed to take off of the 60, Riley started crying and screaming for me like I had never heard it before. I thought it was just about being in the car for so long. So, I reached my hand back and tried to rub her leg while I was driving, hoping to soothe her.
Boy was I way off target on that one. Up came the lunch of spaghetti she had earlier in the day...all over the "counting" Lily toy, her and her seat. My stepmom Mindy, is not a throw up/diaper/anything nasty type of person so she was looking as far away from Riley as she could. We get pulled into a gas station, and I realize that I don't have a change of clothes for Riley. Crap. Well, good thing Riley and Bree pretty much wear the same size clothes! We squeezed Riley into the change of clothes I had for Bree and I proceed to clean out the seat and toy as much as I can. Ugh...so gross! Needless to say, counting Lily met the garbage can because she was so soaked in vomit there was no way I could follow her cleaning directions to "surface clean only with a damp rag". However, Riley felt much better after her little episode, and I got to practice the art of dismantling a car seat in order to wash it all.
In other news...yesterday with therapy Bree was on all fours and did lift up a hand and put it back down! She also was scooting her little butt forward a tiny tiny bit...there may be a slight peek on the horizon when it comes to Bree getting moving! Woo hoo!
Boy was I way off target on that one. Up came the lunch of spaghetti she had earlier in the day...all over the "counting" Lily toy, her and her seat. My stepmom Mindy, is not a throw up/diaper/anything nasty type of person so she was looking as far away from Riley as she could. We get pulled into a gas station, and I realize that I don't have a change of clothes for Riley. Crap. Well, good thing Riley and Bree pretty much wear the same size clothes! We squeezed Riley into the change of clothes I had for Bree and I proceed to clean out the seat and toy as much as I can. Ugh...so gross! Needless to say, counting Lily met the garbage can because she was so soaked in vomit there was no way I could follow her cleaning directions to "surface clean only with a damp rag". However, Riley felt much better after her little episode, and I got to practice the art of dismantling a car seat in order to wash it all.
In other news...yesterday with therapy Bree was on all fours and did lift up a hand and put it back down! She also was scooting her little butt forward a tiny tiny bit...there may be a slight peek on the horizon when it comes to Bree getting moving! Woo hoo!
Monday, November 16, 2009
A promised story
Bree christens Ya-ya
So, you are all aware that Bree has a g tube. Her g tube is right smack dab in the middle of her belly, which I have been told (and have seen) is a little on the odd side. We've had her g tube since July. That's (count em) July, August, September, October, and November...5 months. Not once in that 5 months have we had her g tube pop open and spew the inside stomach contents onto another person....that is until this last Friday. I asked Mindy to get Bree ready for bed and since Bree is such a wiggle worm on the ground she decided to sit Bree in her lap to change her. As soon as she got Bree stripped down and half into her jammies she lifted Bree into the sitting position, and her little tube popped right open and started spraying all over herself and Mindy! All I hear is "HEEELLLPPP! TASH! HEEELLLPPP!". I went rushing into the living room to see Mindy holding Bree as far away as possible and formula still coming out of her g tube! We got Bree cleaned up, and I went and got Bree some new pj's while Mindy changed clothes.
Round two! Mindy lays Bree onto the new jammies to change her. I do not know how it happened the second time, but it popped open again and ran all over Bree and her second pair of pj's for the night. Finally, on the third attempt we got her into clean jammies without any type of mess or accident! However, it was hilarious to see Mindy's face that first time I ran in to help her. Mindy does not do well with throw up, dirty diapers or anything in that form. So, the look of horror and shock on her face was true and real. I just wish I would have had my camera.
So, you are all aware that Bree has a g tube. Her g tube is right smack dab in the middle of her belly, which I have been told (and have seen) is a little on the odd side. We've had her g tube since July. That's (count em) July, August, September, October, and November...5 months. Not once in that 5 months have we had her g tube pop open and spew the inside stomach contents onto another person....that is until this last Friday. I asked Mindy to get Bree ready for bed and since Bree is such a wiggle worm on the ground she decided to sit Bree in her lap to change her. As soon as she got Bree stripped down and half into her jammies she lifted Bree into the sitting position, and her little tube popped right open and started spraying all over herself and Mindy! All I hear is "HEEELLLPPP! TASH! HEEELLLPPP!". I went rushing into the living room to see Mindy holding Bree as far away as possible and formula still coming out of her g tube! We got Bree cleaned up, and I went and got Bree some new pj's while Mindy changed clothes.
Round two! Mindy lays Bree onto the new jammies to change her. I do not know how it happened the second time, but it popped open again and ran all over Bree and her second pair of pj's for the night. Finally, on the third attempt we got her into clean jammies without any type of mess or accident! However, it was hilarious to see Mindy's face that first time I ran in to help her. Mindy does not do well with throw up, dirty diapers or anything in that form. So, the look of horror and shock on her face was true and real. I just wish I would have had my camera.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
